Alan Wake fans have been waiting a long time for a proper sequel, but they may never get one, and that goes double for Quantum Break fans. The reason, according to developer Remedy Entertainment, is Microsoft doesn't want to make them.

"Considering our history... Alan Wake was really interesting but it was a collaboration with Microsoft. Due to certain reasons, it never got a sequel," Remedy CEO Tero Virtala told GamesIndustry.biz. "Quantum Break, also, we put a lot of effort into creating the world, the characters, the stories, but still it was Microsoft IP. They decided not to take it further. If we owned the IP, it's fully in our hands to decide how we create it, how we develop, what are the creative decisions that we take? And then maybe one day in the future, if it proves to be successful, it's again in our hands to decide what will be done. That was important for us."

Exit Theatre Mode

Learning from that, Remedy is doing things differently this time around with Control, which it debuted at E3 last month. Virtala said Control "represents a new step for Remedy." That's in part because it wants to create shorter games and work on multiple projects. But it's also because, for once, Remedy wants to start something it can continue later.

"We can create excellent games, but the type of games we do with an immersive world and characters, memorable stories – those are typically building blocks in any entertainment business for franchises that could live for a long time," said Virtala. "And now for the second time being in a position where we had done all that groundwork and then there was not a possibility to continue those stories... we didn't want to face that again."

Exit Theatre Mode

Remedy released Alan Wake in 2010 on and followed it up with the smaller offshoot Alan Wake's American Nightmare in 2012. Alan Wake was well-received, garnering an 83 Metacritic score on both Xbox 360 and PC. Though American Nightmare was reviewed a bit harsher (76 on Xbox 360 and 73 on PC), the two games had sold a combined 4.5 million copies as of March 2015, and Remedy even had a functioning Alan Wake 2 prototype.

When it releases in 2019, Control will be Remedy's first multiconsole since 2003's Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne. Control bears a strong resemblance to Quantum Break, but it seems more tightly focused.

Nick Santangelo is a freelance writer based in Philadelphia. He loves video games and sports, but not sports video games. Follow him on Twitter.